Bitmain is set to receive $50m in funding. This money will be used to expand their AI research venture. Considering the company is known for Bitcoin mining hardware and operating a pool, that is quite significant. The investment will be made by Sequoia Capital and IDG Capital. This move will also boost the profile of Bitmain among mainstream investors. Artificial intelligence is one of the hottest tech industries right now.
Very few people would expect a Bitcoin mining hardware manufacturer to focus on artificial intelligence. Bitmain shows this can be done without any major issues. In fact, they are raising $50m from venture firms to boost their profile among the mainstream crowd. So far, Sequoia Capital and IDG Capital have already committed to this round of funding. It is an interesting development, to say the least. A Bitcoin manufacturer exploring AI opportunities can yield some intriguing results.
A Different Direction for Bitmain
More specifically, the company aims to manufacture chips for AI in the future. They are not developing any algorithms themselves at this time, though. It is good to see a Bitcoin company explore other ventures as well. Thanks to the Bitcoin price increase, the company can look to expand its presence. AI Is a good industry as any to do so. Moreover, the company has plenty of experience when it came to manufacturing chips already. The Bitcoin community will be rather intrigued by this news, that much is evident.
For those unaware, Bitmain is a highly controversial company in the Bitcoin world. Over the years, the company has been the focal point of many allegations and conspiracy theories. One of their major exploits involves the Asicboost technology. Multiple users claim the company has a competitive Bitcoin mining advantage. Bitmain keeps stating how they are not using Asicboost whatsoever. These debates have been going on for some time now, though. Rest assured we will never know the full truth regarding this particular topic of debate.
Moreover, there is Bitmain’s role in Bitcoin Cash and SegWit2x. Both of these Bitcoin forks are highly controversial as well. The company has successfully put itself in the crosshairs of many Bitcoin supporters. Whether or not that was done intentionally, remains undetermined. Having the company focus on AI may be the best possible outcome for the time being. It will take away some of the heat from the Bitcoin community for now. Then again, there’s no guarantee their AI venture will be successful either.
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